Department of Transportation announces $82.6M in grants for roadway safety planning projects
As a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s strategy to reduce roadway deaths, 235 communities will receive allotments for safety projects from a $82.6 million federal investment through the Safe Streets for All grant program.
“Whether it’s a dangerous intersection or highway, or a need for better bus and bike lanes, no one can better pinpoint a community’s safety needs than the people who actually live and work there,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg in a statement about the initative. “In the past five years, the communities we are awarding these grants to experienced nearly 14,000 roadway deaths. To help change that unacceptable reality, we are proud to deliver this needed funding to help them address their unique safety needs and save lives.”
For the last few years, after spiking to an all-time high during the pandemic, annaul traffic deaths have trended downward. Fostering safety through roadway improvements has been a major focus of the federal government through spending programs like the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the American Rescue Plan Act. Based on early estimates for the first half of 2023 from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, fatalities caused by traffic accidents declined for the fifth straight quarter. An estimated 19,515 have people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes since the beginning of the year, a decrease of about 3.3 percent compared to the 20,190 fatalities that occured in the first half of 2022, according to data published by the traffic safety administration in September.
“Roadway safety projects save lives,” said U.S. Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg. “The department is so excited to partner with communities all across the country to quickly and nimbly get these plans ready for action.”
The latest investment is the first of two announcements for this round of the Safe Streets and Roads for All competitive grant program, and includes planning and demonstration grants. The second announcement is expected to come in December, and will include funding to implement safety improvements.
Among the projects that will receive funding through this round of investment, the Navajo Nation Division of Transportation will receive $1.44 million to develop a new comprehensive safety action plan, Deerfield Beach, Fla. will be awarded $192,000 to test a temporary build project along Southwest 3rd Avenue, to better understand how to increase safety, accessibility and mobility along the corridor. Kauai, Hawaii, will likewise receive $200,000 to develop a new comprehensive safety action plan, and the Bangor Area Comprehensive Transportation System in Maine received $400,000 in Federal funding to develop an action plan, and pilot temporary demonstration activities such as separated bicycle lanes, flashing beacons at a few key intersections, and modifications to lane delineations to inform action plan projects and strategies, according to the statement. The complete list of awards can be viewed on the Department of Transportation’s website.
In conjunction with the awards announcement, the transportation department is advocating during its annual October pedestrian safety month and hosting informational webinars, highlighting challenges and opportunities, and otherwise raising awareness through initiatives like Safety Advisory 23-1: Bus-to-Person Collisions.